Gideon's Dawn

Rating:
Summary: 4 1/2 Stars...A Future and a Hope
Review: Christian fantasy...To some this is an oxymoron. Although Tolkien and Lewis were forerunners in the genre, the church world has often thumbed its nose at the power of myth and fantasy to paint christological themes. Conversely, some Christian fantasists have gone too far with the insertion of biblical ideas and weakened the power of their stories in the process.

"Gideon's Dawn" is a welcome addition to the short list. It's greatest strength lies in the main character's weakness. Gideon Dawning is a flawed and cynical man. As he struggles in our own world with questions of family and the past, he proves sympathetic, yet hard to reach. When a mysterious earthquake plunges him from the Colorado mountains into another world, he remains aloof to the hopes foisted upon him. Only as his dark secrets come to light do we fully understand his reluctance to be anything other than a man without a purpose. Gideon is a survivor, plain and simple.

Warden succeeds in creating a world both creative and familiar. The depth of his world-making grows as the story moves on, and the glossary in the back of the book is helpful in keeping matters straight. The author's work and the publisher's risk on this novel are well worth it. Although the story has slow patches in the first half, it picks up the pace and leaves us wanting more. With tighter editing, the book could've been 50 pages shorter, but the author refuses to settle for stale narrative and tries to give us more, rather than less.

Warden sets a new tone. Along with Stephen Lawhead, Kathy Tyers, Randall Ingermanson, and Karen Hancock, the Christian fantasy market continues to expand, and, with the upcoming sequel "Waymaker," we fantasy readers once again have a future and a hope. Much like Gideon Dawning himself.

Rating:
Summary: Absorbing Christian fantasy
Review: I absolutely loved this book. This to me was a complete surprise. I have made several attempts over the years to find good, Christian fantasy fiction to no avail. Aside from the obvious, Tolkein and Lewis, it seemed that no one could put together a readable story that would hold my attention. All too often storylines became secondary to whatever theological ax the author has to grind, with the characters serving as some sort of moral bludgeon on the brain of the reader. Not so this book, the storyline and characters remained central throughout, with plenty of action to keep a person's interest. While some of it did seem derivative, both from Donaldson and (I feel) Weis and Hickman's Darksword Trilogy, I was so thrilled to be reading good fantasy I hardly noticed. Book two of this series(entitled Waymaker) is supposed to be out this year, I can't wait. When it is finally released, I'll be first in line.

Rating:
Summary: great read
Review: I'm a very avid reader, and will read just about any genre. Gideon's Dawn is one of the most amazing books I've ever read. The overall style, the characters, plot, setting, ect, are remarkable! I had a very hard time putting the book down, and have now read the book several times, and personally own it. Giving the book a 5 out of 5 does not give it justice. Also, if you are a bit upset and wondering about the cliffhanger ending, its because Gideon's Dawn is the first book in a trilogy. The second book entitled Waymaker, is scheduled to come out in June of 2004. Gideon's Dawn is a must read, and is definately worth the 10 or so dollars it would cost in the store. I give it my highest recommendation.

Rating:
Summary: Story = Good, Writing....
Review: I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that this is this author's first attempt at writing fiction, and going on that assumption, this is a noble attempt. The story is wonderful and very descriptive, the way Tolkien is half the time, when he isn't cutting corners by simply giving us the outcome. Usually excessive description bores me to death, but in this case something about the way it is presented makes it quite welcome.
The thing that bothered me most as I was reading this book was the way the author incorporated an omniscient point of view. In his defense, an omniscient point of view is difficult to do correctly, and I've seen much worse examples. I much prefer the way that it was presented in Thomas William's Crown of Eden, and The Devil's Mouth, where the author gave the story up to a point in one main character's point of view, then did a second part with another's, then brought them together at the point that they met. This isn't the only way of doing it, but it's better than alternating chapters the way that Michael D. Warden did in this book. I found myself very tempted to simply skip chapters because it seemed like I was constantly at a cliffhanger and had to force myself through the chapter in the middle to get back into the action. Because of this I had a lot of trouble getting into the story (until about a quarter of the way through, I hadn't even decided whether I would bother finishing it or not), and it took me about 10 times as long as usual to finish this book.
I'll definitely be picking up a copy of the next book in this story, because the twist at the end left me really wondering what direction the story will take in the future, but in future books, I hope that the author's writing/organizational style will improve with time.

Rating:
Summary: A Sensory Ride into the Heart of Imagination
Review: In the spirit of C.S. Lewis and J. R.R. Tolkien, a new breed of Christian authors is venturing into the world of fantasy, attempting to open the reader's mind and draw parallels to the life of faith. Michael Warden, writer, adventurist and pastor is one of those daring souls. And he delivers a powerful punch in his thriller, Gideon's Dawn.

Gideon is a confused and conflicted college professor who battles fierce rages when all of a sudden a routine earthquake-watching expedition launches him into another world in which he is a complete stranger but whose characters quickly brand him as a Kinsman Redeemer. It's a title he quickly rejects and a world that he struggles to understand.

Gideon's Dawn reveals the treasure that results when a person of faith fully explores the depth of human imagination. It draws not-so-obvious parallels to the Christian experience and yet leaves the reader spell-bound, searching for clues to the meaning of this strange new life of Gideon.

Wardens' characters are rich, his plots complex, and the story flowing in style and substance. This book is no cookie-cutter page-turner, but a deep and intriguing novel that will exhaust all of your senses.

He leaves Gideon as a character with a rough past and a flawed life. He is someone with whom we can identify-imagine being lifted from normalcy into a strange world where Words have power and where thoughts are not kept silent but can be read by your peers? And yet it is in this life that Gideon finds his purpose and calling.

If you enjoy a good story with many twists and unpredictability, then Gideon's Dawn is for you.

Rating:
Summary: great read
Review: It took me a few chapters to really get into the book, but then I couldn't put it down. It takes you on a magical ride through lands that stimulate your imagination. Although this book would be great just as it is, I was thrilled to find out that it is just the first in a trilogy.

Rating:
Summary: This book Rocks!
Review: Micheal Warden yanks his readers out of their seats with this incredible novel. Gideon's Dawn is just an awesome story written with the calibur and imagination of any of the top fantasy writer(Tolkien or C.S.Lewis). The original idea of how languages can cause miraculous events to happen for both good and evil is awesome but,most of all, I love Warden's empahsis on spirituality and the purity of the heart. This aspect gives a whole new twist that is not found in the lord of the rings and not as elaborated in The Chronicles of Narnia. The major heroes in this book (with the exception of one at first, you'll have to read the book to find out who and why) all sure purity of spirit and heart. The characters emobody all types of personalities and races of which everyone can relate to and some may want to emulate. I know that I wouldnt mind being like the clear minded, focused,and kind heart Ajel Windrunner (a major hero in the book) and i know all of us can relate to the books main character and namesake Gideon who has an uncanny ablity to be obstinate in every way. In conclusion, This book Rocks!

Rating:
Summary: fundamentally derivative, ultimately promising
Review: Practically my first impression (it began as I perused the map which opens the book's content) was, "Mr. Warden takes his cues from Stephen Donaldson." Donaldsonian themes, titles, character flaws riddle the book, particularly the world-building elements of the book. There on the southern frontier of the map is Castellan Watch instead of Kevin's Watch. An accident propels a self-doubting antihero into another world where he immediately costs a salt-of-the-earth family a great deal of sorrow (but one of them will die in his stead later, shaming him with grace). The antihero initially refuses to embrace the messianic destiny the land attempts to foist upon him. An ancient ruler once uttered a curse that deeply scarred the land, but the patches that remain unscathed are fecund (I believe Donaldson's word is "viridian") beyond belief, a shock to the antihero's Earth-dulled senses. Sound familiar, Land and Thomas Covenant fans? Gideon finds a Council of Lords, repositories of ancient wisdom the scholars have not yet been able to decipher, soundenors (for Stonedowners), Wordhaveners (for Woodhelvinin---by this point in the book I was wondering where the Woodhelvinin were, and sure enough, here they came), etc.

I instinctively subtracted all this from Warden's world to find out what he really put into it besides converting Donaldson (and the odd Jordan or Lawhead influence), and found little but muzziness--an ill-defined, tepidly-flavored world. This isn't fair to do of course; all authors are derivative, and if we excised all Anglo-Saxon influence from Tolkien (just to pick an example), we wouldn't have much but muzziness either. I can only plead that Warden tempted me to see nothing but his influences, since he didn't digest them very thoroughly. Soundenor for Stonedowner, I ask you! I AM thrilled that Warden founds his world on Words and languages. That is a good cornerstone for some unique fantasy.

As I said, the initial, world-building part of the book seemed obviously derivative. The plot grew on me (and, hey, I read Christian fantasy---I'm used to plots staggering around a bit) until by Chapter 49 I wrote, with a bit of surprise, "Good Chapter." I think it had to do with Gideon being stripped down to hope as opposed to despair (something Thos. Covenant would be loth to admit). The plot twist at the end did take me by surprise, and so I'm ready to say that I am looking forward to "Waymaker" coming out soon. I will read it and expect to enjoy it, even if it is a carbon copy of "The Illearth War." I liked "The Illearth War" anyway.

Rating:
Summary: Wow. Like a New Tolkien for our Generation.
Review: Wow. It's hard to believe that Gideon's Dawn is Michael Warden's first novel. He writes with such imagination and vision that the characters and setting seem to come alive right on the page.

The story goes something like this: Gideon Dawning is a burned-out teaching assistant at the University of Texas. When he takes a group of undergrads on a geology expedition, he is summarily and unexpectedly transported into a whole new realm---birthed into this place through the chaos of an earthquake. Here he is taken (mistaken?) against his repeated protests as a long-foretold messiah. The result is a journey of hardship and discovery as he makes his way through a world where words have power and "there is no magic, only words of life and death."

Have to admit I approached this one with skepticism, but was won over almost immediately by the lyrical prose and depth of story Warden has created. I'm told it took him 10 years to write---and it was worth it. Fans of Terry Brooks, Tolkien, or CS Lewis should eat this up. Warden is a bright new star in fantasy fiction...Let's hope he keeps writing for another 50 years.